A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle interior accessory. More particularly, the present invention relates to LCD auxiliary sun visors and their mounting means for electromechanically connecting such LCDs to existing sun visors or dashboard top.
B. Description of the Prior Art
In addition to conventional gauges like speedometer, tachometer, fuel and temperature gauges, newer vehicles present ever increasing operational information through the instrument panel indicators generally facing the driver through the steering wheel. For example, in a mini van model the LED indicators alone count to twenty eight or so though part of them will be turned on any one time requiring the driver's attention while driving. Driving in rain or direct sun light, discussing with passengers or a phone caller and/or reading a paper map are known distractions many vehicle drivers experience, as with trying to follow the new navigator LCD displays for showing the vehicle's changing driving locations with reference to the moving street names on LCD displays. Due to the crowded display space in the vehicle dashboard, the LCD displays must be positioned in the center fascia out of the line of sight of the driver. Normally tight tolerance to the front viewing area for the driver prohibits an additional blocking of views by such a navigation display even though it assists the driver in timely steering the vehicle. New displays are emerging such as a liquid crystal windshield display wherein a vehicle windshield itself is a liquid crystal display for playing semi-transparent graphics as suggested by U.S. Pat. No. 5,920,363 to Rofe. Current advancements in electronic data processing make use of conventional video display to show actually photographed scenes of roads superimposed with additional graphic information. Besides the liquid crystal windshield display, Heads Up Displays or HUD has been tried for applications in public use for some time. HUD beams an image from a dashboard-mounted projector to the windshield so that the driver safely keeps the eyes on the front road conditions with fewer distractions. The images may be a prerecorded video file or live video feeds from an onboard camera at the rear of the vehicle to monitor the backward area for any hazards. However, in order to apply the display advancement the major renovation is required to dismantle the permanent vehicle windshield which is performed only by professional windshield technicians.
There have been attempts to utilize existing convenience devices for additional displays of driving information. It has been suggested to designate a limited portion of the interior rear view mirror for transforming it between a reflective mirror surface and a transparent screen area with the use of a transflective coating on the rear view mirror to hide the LCD display normally but showing it temporarily when the vehicle is in the reverse gear. Others offered passenger-side sun visor replacements that can play a video for the front occupants to watch although driving with diverted attention from the traffic may be seriously compromising the safety of the entire passengers of the vehicle and others.
Therefore, it is necessary to have a simple display method of driving information for the driver in a safe way.
Other efforts to bring displayed information closer to the driver's line of sight include U.S. Pat. No. 5,971,468 to King suggesting an incorporation of vehicle display into vehicle sun visor where a sun visor is lowered to reveal a digital display panel.
In view of the foregoing, an object of the present invention is to provide a transparent display panel for use in a vehicle that doubles as an auxiliary sun visor with electronically controlled shading for an optimum protection against harmful lighting conditions.